No End of Books

Pick-up Lines for Book Lovers by Brianna Stacyn So, this is going to be a shorter post, mainly because I've come down with something virus-like and don't have a whole lot of energy.  However, I'm making a foray into comedy, so we'll see how that goes. Brace yourself.   Have you ever wanted to tell a book nerd you like them?  Conversely, have you ever been liked by someone who knew you as a book lover?  No matter if you have or if you haven't, you can still enjoy - *pulls cover off*  Voilà!  These lovely pickup lines, guaranteed (not!) to work.  Without further ado: The Smooth One: "Hey, are you still looking for your Darcy (or Elizabeth?)  Because I'm available." The Salesperson: "Just think, if we got married and combined our collections, we'd have an entire library!" The Background Check: "So, do you like _______?"  (Follow-up Question: "Do you prefer it to _______?") The Single One (Also known...

10 Great Books by Brianna Stacyn I always love the hidden gem - the book that no one else seems to know about, which you enthusiastically tell everyone to read.  Here's a list of ten books that I've loved, but that aren't as well-known. 10.   Peeled - Joan Bauer I love this one because: A. It's about a girl who writes!  B. The senior citizens are hilarious.  C.  This quote alone: "No typos, either, but there was some unfortunate wording in a classified ad: DOG FOR SALE - Eats anything and is particularly fond of children." 9.   T he Thirty-Nine Steps - John Buchan  This is a grown-up version of Tintin in some ways.  Think an epic chase across the English countryside, a terrifying omnipresent villain, and absolute sheer amazing spy story. 8.   The Rumpelstiltskin Problem - Vivian Vande Velde If you, by any chance, enjoy fairytale retellings, do not miss this book!  Her hilarious take on Rump...

Yep, that title's correct.  I've been tagged (first time, ahh!)  The lovely, amazing, and sarcastic Mary Kate *applause* has tagged me for the Writer's Book Tag !  If you haven't already clicked those little links, what are you waiting for?  As I already said, she's amazing, so you're completely and totally missing out . . . *taps foot* All righty, now that we've established the fact that Mary Kate is wonderful, on to the tag!  RULES: Shout out to the blogger who tagged you! (I don't know that shouting at my computer is the best way to do this, so I'll just point you back up to that first paragraph and threaten you with death if you disregard my instructions. 😊) Tag 3 people. (I'll do that at the end . . . that way y'all have to read the whole thing. :D ) Use the Graphic. (See below. Such a pretty graphic, isn't it?) On to the questions!  This should be fun . . .  First Draft: A Book Or Series ...

. . . . . . . . . Oh, hello!  I'm so sorry, I didn't notice you there.  *takes off headphones*  I thought I'd better do a little research for this post, so I'm procrastinat - um, listening to music.  What am I listening to?  I thought you'd never ask!  (Please, be warned that all these songs are extremely dangerous and may provoke plot bunnies, obsession, and/or excessive headphone usage.  Also, all of them are clean, but a few of the groups have rather . . . different names.)  Further up and further in! Instrumental: Electronic Down Never Out - Approaching Nirvana For some reason, I find this song extremely soothing and calming.  Approaching Nirvana has become one of my study music go-to groups this past year, because their songs are upbeat without being distracting.  Also, there aren't any lyrics to make reading difficult.  :D  Lyrical: Alt-Pop The Judge - Twenty Øne Pilots I'm not...

12 Angry Men by Brianna Stacyn I think every young writer (old ones too, for that matter!) should be required to watch this movie as a study in characters.  With almost no content concerns (one usage of d---, a few racial slurs, shown as wrong and bigoted) and ninety minutes of sheer amazing development while twelve men sit in the same room, it's one of the best movies I've ever watched. First of all, the entire movie, except the first three minutes, takes place in a jury room.  90 minutes in the same room!  After watching this movie, I've begun to wonder if a lot of movement through different settings is good.  Sometimes, I think it comes of the expense of character movement.  I know I've read books and watched movies where the characters are constantly getting into new predicaments, but they never really change.   (Looking at you on this, Pirates of the Caribbean. 😊)  This movie, though, has the best character development of any I've eve...

I'm starting out with a book that I know well (because, yikes, it's my first review!  *insert panic here*)  I've loved Tolkien's works ever since my mom read the Hobbit out loud to us when we were about nine or ten.  I then had the chance to watch a theatre production of the Hobbit, which was the best way ever to study the characters!  (Sidenote: I will not be mentioning the movies and their flaws.  It'd take too long.)  The best facet of Tolkien's work, in my opinion, is his talent for bringing characters and settings to vivid life.  The Hobbit is a classic example of the "untalented" character having a lot more to him than is first evident.  Bilbo Baggins is not a strong, perfect hero, but he is a realistic, relatable person (fine, hobbit.)  Gandalf is the wise shepherd who occasionally just can't stand the dwarves one moment longer.  And the dwarves?  They seem a little bit like a very large homeschooling family.  . ....